WHATSAPP offers a feature that allows you to create groups dedicated to the broadcast in which only the administrator has the right to publish.
To spreadinformation, we immediately think of social networks (or email lists). But messaging applications are also turning into new channels.
For example, on Facebook Messenger, it is already possible to create sorts of newsletters via the platform of bots of the email app. Telegram also has channels that allow to disseminate info.
And now, WHATSAPP has a group type in which only the administrator can send messages. The other members only receive the information.
Today, we launch a new group setting in which only administrators can send messages to a group. One of the ways people use groups is to receive announcements and important information, including parents and teachers in schools, community centres and non-profit organizations. We have introduced this new parameter so that administrators can have better tools for these use cases, writes WHATSAPP in a press release.
To transform a WhatsApp group into a group where only the administrator can post a message, it only needs to change an option in the group settings.
However, as suggested in the press release, WHATSAPP has not (yet) provided this feature for mass streaming. As a reminder, WhatsApp groups are limited to 256 members.
But given the popularity of this application in some countries, such as India where it has hundreds of millions of users, it is certain that the media are already exploring ways to use WHATSAPP as a distribution channel for their content.
For example, in India, BloombergQuint already uses WHATSAPP to broadcast info alerts.